Medina, Lyndonville won’t continue shared programs, including musical and soccer

Photo by Tom Rivers: Elizabeth Whipple of Lyndonville, right, is Cinderella and Danielle Schmidt of Medina is the Fairy Godmother during Lyndonville and Medina’s production of Cinderella last week in Lyndonville. The school districts have had a shared high school musical program for about a decade but that arrangement will end after this school year.

MEDINA – In an announcement this week, the Medina School District Board of Education has decided to discontinue shared programs with the Lyndonville School District.

Medina superintendent Mark Kruzynski said the two schools first combined for musicals and football during a recession in 2011-12.

“Lyndonville was looking to participate in football, and Medina had already cut musicals out of the budget,” said Kruzynski, who was high school principal at the time. “We discussed combining with Lyndonville for musicals and football.”

That arrangement would eventually extend to boys and girls soccer and swimming, and track for a time.

Lyndonville joined with Barker and Roy-Hart for football the past two seasons.

The main reason for going on their own now is because Medina has renovated the high school auditorium, with staging, sound system and lighting.

“We want to bring the musicals back into our district,” Kruzynski said.  “It’s been a great relationship all along.”

He said going forward each school will do their own production.

“The cooperation has been great, but it’s time to move forward,” Kruzynski said. “We have a new teacher anxious to do musicals.”

Sharon Smith, interim superintendent of Lyndonville Central School, agreed the relationship has been very good and mutually beneficial.

“We are grateful for the partnership,” Smith said. “It’s been wonderful working with our neighbors, but Lyndonville will now move forward with our boys and girls soccer programs and musicals.”

She said she was advised of Medina’s decision ahead of time and is working with another neighbor for girls soccer.

“We are also looking forward to continuing a spectacular musical program in Lyndonville under the leadership of Jennifer Trupo, Kelly Follman, Eric Villalta and Dan Dragula,” Smith said.

She said students will continue to do community events together.

“This will all be good,” Smith said.